Gin and Jellied Eels – a walk through Clerkenwell

St John’s Gate, (c) David Brown, 2013

Explore the rich history of food and drink in a walk through Clerkenwell led by Susan Hahn.

Clerkenwell’s position just outside the city walls and its plentiful supply of water attracted first the religious houses and then brewers and distillers. The ancient cattle and meat markets stimulated taverns and ale-houses and subsequently butchers’ shops and restaurants.

In 1562 the Venetian merchant Alessandro Magno was amazed at the scale of London and its appetite, “it is almost impossible to believe they could eat so much meat in one city alone.”

This walk takes us through four and a half centuries of examples of Clerkenwell and Islington’s prodigious appetite and thirst and it seems as though London’s fascination with food and drink has not changed much.

Please meet at Farringdon Underground Station – just outside the main modern south entrance on Cowcross Street at the east end nearest the Castle pub. The walk finishes near Angel Underground and will take between an hour and a half and two hours to complete. For the time and dates that this walk runs please check our front page. No booking required – turn up and pay on the day (currently £8/£6 concessions). Please check out travel arrangements at TFLs journey planner.

You can contact the guide before the walk at susan.hahn@ciga.org.uk.

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